Destination Excellence: One step closer to leadership

Students living in residence halls learned how to more influential in their roles and were taught how to be leaders Sunday.

About 375 student leaders from across campus gathered in the Bovee University Center for Destination Excellence.

“Destination Excellence is an annual program offered by the Office of Residence Life, and its goal is to be a foundation and support for our hall councils and our students in leadership positions in our residence halls,” said Kim Voisin, assistant director of Residence Life and overseer of Central Michigan University’s Leadership Committee.

Halls are asked to attend the program as a delegation, usually headed by the hall council president and vice president. The conference works as an educational event, as well as a community builder.

“They get to know other students and hopefully get to pick up some information and use it to get involved on campus and in the residence halls,” Voisin said.

At Destination Excellence, there are separate sessions for new and returning attendees so everyone learns something new. Subjects covered by new leaders include personal management and balance, meeting management and organizational culture, and engaging your group in CMU’s Homecoming.

Returning students learned about being an influential person, philanthropy and Homecoming.

At the end of the conference, students head to break out sessions. If they are in an appointed hall council or residence hall leadership position, students got into nine different break out groups based on the position they were in.

There were also three general groups for those not in specific leadership positions about the regional GLACURH conference, service opportunities and other ways to get involved on campus.

“Hall council is our main (focus), though we have a lot of students that are just residents. We want to provide them resources that will help make them better residents, and able to make them better leaders if positions open,” Voisin said.

Pleasant Ridge senior Samm Wunderlich participated last year in Destination Excellence and was asked this year to lead the president’s round table. She thinks it is awesome to get the opportunity to talk to other hall council leaders and learn what works well in their halls.

“I think it is fun. It is a chance to get hyped up about hall council,” Wunderlich said.

Sherene McHenry, professor of Counseling and Special Education, was the keynote speaker for this year’s Destination Excellence. Her speech focused on inspiring and motivating attendees, helping them set a vision for themselves academically, as a student and as a person finding out who they are going to be in this world.

“The best indicator of your future is your past performance, “ McHenry said.

Gaylord sophomore Stephanie Smith said she decided to participate in hall council this year as vice president of Sweeney Hall. This is her first year attending Destination Excellence, and she hoped to get a lot out of it.

“I hope to learn how to be a better leader for hall council, and how to get the residents in the hall to be more active,” Smith said.

The event was also used to inspire the students.

“You are the future, and the future is looking really bright from this perspective,” McHenry told the Destination Excellence student leaders.